Samenvatting

Child labor evokes deep emotions and is cause for growing international concern. What, if anything, should governments of liberal-democratic societies do to combat child labor?

This paper discusses the possibilities and pitfalls of Western policies that seek to curb child labor abroad. Since such policies aim to combat practices in another society, policy makers should be aware of the many relevant differences between developing and developed countries. We discuss three issues that are central to this debate: socioeconomic causes of child labor, different conceptions of childhood, and the distinction between child work and child labor. Studying the historical example of the emergence and disappearance of child labor in nineteenth-century Netherlands broadens our analysis. We then evaluate the implications of these investigations and conclude the paper by suggesting five recommendations for Western policy makers that would avoid the pitfalls discussed.